Sting to Receive 'The American Music Award of Merit' and Perform at the 2016 American Music Awards

By Steve Dove | Oct 24th, 2016

dick clark productions and ABC announced today that composer, singer, actor, author, and activist Sting will be honored with "The American Music Award of Merit" at the 2016 American Music Awards. The iconic musician will take to the stage to perform a medley of songs, including the raucous first single, "I Can't Stop Thinking About You" off his new rock/pop album, 57th & 9th, as well as some of his greatest hits. This will be Sting's American Music Awards performance debut. He joins previously announced show opener Bruno Mars. The 2016 American Music Awards, the world's biggest fan-voted award show, will broadcast live from the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles on Sunday, November 20, at 8:00 p.m. EST on ABC.

The "American Music Award of Merit" is only given to artists who have made truly exceptional contributions to the music industry. The award was last given in 2008 to Annie Lennox. Previous honorees include Garth Brooks, Johnny Cash, Gloria Estefan, Whitney Houston, Janet Jackson, Michael Jackson, Billy Joel, Bon Jovi, Paul McCartney, Willie Nelson, Prince and Frank Sinatra.

Composer, singer, actor, author, and activist – Sting was born in Newcastle, England before moving to London in 1977 to form The Police with Stewart Copeland and Andy Summers. The band released five studio albums, earned six Grammy Awards and two Brits and was inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003.

Since 1989, Sting has released fourteen solo albums and received an additional 10 Grammy Awards, two Brits, a Golden Globe, an Emmy, three Oscar nominations, Billboard Magazine's Century Award, and MusiCares 2004 Person of the Year. Also a member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame, he received the Kennedy Center Honors in December of 2014. Throughout his enduring career, he has sold close to 100 million albums from his combined work with The Police and as a solo artist. In 2015, Sting received a Tony Award nomination for Best Original Score for his Broadway musical, The Last Ship.

On November 11, Sting will release 57th & 9th, his first rock/pop album in over a decade, which features the raucous, guitar-driven first single, "I Can't Stop Thinking About You". Produced by Martin Kierszenbaum, the album takes its title from the Manhattan street corner that Sting crossed each day as he walked to the studios in Hell's Kitchen where the recordings were done.

Sting has appeared in more than 15 films and authored two books, including The New York Times best-selling memoir, Broken Music. His support for human rights organizations mirrors his art in its universal outreach. Along with wife Trudie Styler, Sting founded the Rainforest Fund in 1989 to protect both the world's rainforests and the indigenous people living there. www.sting.com

The nominations for the 2016 American Music Awards were announced earlier this month, revealing that Drake leads with 13 nominations, while Rihanna received seven and Adele and Justin Bieber received five nominations each. Beyoncé and The Chainsmokers each received four nominations. Additionally, Bryson Tiller, Twenty One Pilots, Carrie Underwood, Fetty Wap and The Weeknd earned three nominations each.

The Artist of the Year nominees are Adele, Beyoncé, Justin Bieber, Drake, Selena Gomez, Ariana Grande, Rihanna, Twenty One Pilots, Carrie Underwood and The Weeknd. The ten nominees will be narrowed to five based on the votes received through Monday, November 14 at 8:59:59am PT. Voting for Artist of the Year will close on Thursday, November 17 at 8:59:59pm PT. The winner will be determined by the total votes received throughout the entire voting period.

New Artist of the Year Un-leashed by T-Mobile nominees are Alessia Cara, The Chainsmokers, DNCE, Shawn Mendes and Zayn. Voting for this category opens November 2nd.